


Home for Channukah

by GirlwithSwordandBow



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Hanukkah, Jewish Bucky Barnes, M/M, Mutual Pining, No trauma, Pre-Serum Steve Rogers, home for hanukkah, just dumb pining boys, look i just want them to meaningful lock eyes over the flames let me have this
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-26
Updated: 2019-12-26
Packaged: 2021-02-18 02:35:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 942
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21970279
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GirlwithSwordandBow/pseuds/GirlwithSwordandBow
Summary: Brooklyn boys Bucky Barnes and Steve Rogers are attending MIT and The Boston College of Art, respectively. Steve hadn't been planning on going back to New York for the holidays, but Bucky's flight is cancelled and he decides to drive home, he can't just leave his best pal behind, even if things have been weird between them lately...
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers
Kudos: 10





	Home for Channukah

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first fic I've written in years. Why this? I don't know. All I know is that it slammed into my brain on the first day of Channukah and I need to get it out before chag is over or all will be for not.

"Whaddya say Stevie? Road trip?"

Steve hadn't been planning on going back to New York for Christmas break, he didn't have the money for a flight, and its not like he has family to go back to anymore. But Bucky's flight had been cancelled, which meant he was going to miss the big Barnes/Roth/Proctor Channukah Palooza. And if he didn't beat cousin Arnie in the driedel championship he will bring shame to the name of Barnes.

He had, apparently, been complaining about all of this while debriefing a final assignment with a classmate. Who happened to be Tony freaking Stark. Stark was an ass, but casually generous in the way folks with lots of money and little intimacy tend to be. So he offered one of his cars so Bucky could make it home.

Yes. _One of_ his cars.

Steve really does take a minute to consider. Once, a 5 hour car ride with Buck would sound like the best day ever. But he had maybe been avoiding him since Buck had told him he had started hooking up with guys and might be bi. Chanting 'straight best friend, straight best friend, straight best friend' had been the only thing holding back his dumb pining heart for so long that he didn't know what stupid thing he might do or say if he and Buck were alone now that there was a question mark on the "straight" part of that equation.

But, then he thinks about Winnie's latkes and sufganyot from the kosher bakery up the street and how Rebecca's baby is almost due and how they're turning off the heat in the dorms (which he maybe had specifically not told Buck) and says:

"Bring the salt and vinegar chips, I'll start packing."

\------

Bucky is already across the bridge from MIT campus heading into Boston proper when it starts to occur to him that this might be a bad idea. Not just the 'driving a car that costs as much as his whole degree through a snow storm' part. Or even the 'borrowing said car from a smug jackass who will hold this favor over his head for as long as he can' part. No, all of that he had already considered while negotiating this whole offer with Stark. It was the '5 plus hours in a tiny space with Steve' part.

There had been tension between them lately. They texted and talked as much as ever, and Steve was always happy to hang out with friends, but one-on-one.... not for months now.

He tries to attribute it to the conversation they hadn't had about what happens after this summer. Bucky had one more semester to go, while Steve, who could never take a full course load with his health, had another year before completing his program. They might end up living in different cities for the first time in their lives.

But that had been on the horizon for awhile, and the change had been more recent than that. He couldn't help the nagging feeling that Steve had been avoiding him since he told him about hooking up with that dude at a party. Which didn't make any fuckin' sense!! Steve had been out since the 8th grade, and they had faced the push back of that through high school together.

Maybe he shouldn't have waited so long to tell Steve. To his credit, it took him awhile to figure it out himself! Even with an openly queer best friend and a lesbian little sister who had been welcomed with open arms, heteronormativity was a hell of a monkey on the back! And the whole 'liking guys' thing is so tied up in the 'being in love with Steve probably since he was 10' thing.....

So yeah. Now that he knew he liked guys and Steve knew he liked guys and he could admit to himself that he was in love with Steve and Steve never so much as looked at him that way, perhaps spending half a day in an enclosed space with the object of his affection was... A bad idea.

It was a bit late to back out now that he had stockpiled Steve's favourite snacks and was halfway to his dorm. And he couldn't really leave the poor guy alone in the dorms over break now that he had an out that didn't involve Steve fretting over money. Steve loves Christmas, and Bucky knows he enjoys Channukah at the Barnes', he couldn't leave him behind.

He pulls into the nearly abandoned student parking lot and Steve is waiting for him on the curb, a duffel bag hanging from his skinny shoulder. Steve's blue eyes go wide at the sight of the car. A sleek black 2 seater whose metal parts probably all have some kind've gold alloy in them. Buck presses a button that swings the door up and open, unable to help himself from peacocking a little bit. She is a beaut, even if he's only borrowing her for the week.

"Good lord. Buck, how much is this car worth?" Steve asks, looking afraid to lay a fingerprint on it.

"Um, there isn't actually a price? Stark said this will be a good stress test - this model isn't on the market yet."

Steve still looks pretty apprehensive.

"Stevie we ain't gonna break it. And it's not like we're putting Stark in a pinch even if we do. The sound system connects to Spotify, the cup holders are adjustable and..." and for this he gives Steve a meaningful look "heated seats Stevie. Heated. Seats."

Steve grins. Throws his bag into the back and hops in.


End file.
